Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1887-02-25
RUSSIA'S FINANCES.
ARCH MINERAL COUNTRY WITHOUT
PRIVATE ENTERPRISE.

Method of Reaching the Precious Met
als-southern siberia's Prosperity and
Fertility of SoiI-The Cossack.
had this morning long and pleasant
conversation with Col. de Gessler an ex-
member of the staff of the Grand Duke
vladimir, in the Russian army. Col. de
Gessler has occupied an official position in
the military forces of the Russian govern
ment for many years, and is intimately
acquainted with their resources, their
quality, and their power.
"Just what" l asked in the course of
our conversation, 'is the condition of finan-
cial affairs in Russian"
"There seems to be an utter drainage of
gold from the country. Our ruble, worth
nominally something like 50 cents of your
money, now sells for AZ cents. This, of
course, applies to the paper equivalent
which is in circulation throughout Russia
Coins of all kinds are very scarce, and pa
per money is about the only thing one
sees. There was time, directly after the
last war, when the banks would give no
gold at all, no matter what kind of an or
der was presented to them. They were
willing enough to comply with the de-
mands made upon them, but they had no
gold whatever to do it with. We have a
iiOh hiiucIdl country DuG Unere Is no IN
centive to private enterprise in mining,
while we all know what such work is
likely to amount to when it is done by the
government. Let me give you an exam
pie of the way these things are managed
man buys piece of land in the mineral
country, and undertakes to locate a mine
OH 1t. He digs down and down, until he
reaches the vein of metal
up to this point he has been allowed to
go ahead upon his own responsibility, but
the minute he touches gold or silver he is
compelled to report to the governor of
that province, and the representative of
the car comes in and takes possession
paying a certain amount in cash for the
property. Thus the discoverer does not
receive enough of benefit from his work to
attract very many gold-diggers to the
mines. Some of the frauds that are prac-
ticed on the government are interesting
The methods of digging gold are very
primitive, and the fashion is to cut a great
cash in the mountain side instead of sink
ing shafts or tunneling.
NEW METHOD OF MINING.
"a number of years ago the government
sent young engineer to adopt more prac-
ticable means of digging out the precious
metals. He went, and reported that he
was about to put new scheme into prac-
tice. The soldiers in Siberia can not do
military duty to any extent in the winter
and they are allowed to work as laborers
in that period, keeping for themselves
whatever they may earn This young en-
gineer engaged thousands of them and set
them to work, making an excavation
which covered more than a square mile at
the surface. Year after year this work
was carried on, the excavation growing
smaller and smaller toward the bottom,
the sides slanting SO as to keep the earth
from falling in. By the time the rock was
reached there was not much space for the
proposed operations, and the whole thing
was abandoned as failure In the inter
val, by paying his laborers ruble day
per head, and drawing three or four times
that amount from the government, the en-
gineer had accumulated a fortune of about
100000 rubles. The affair has never been
investigated. Siberia is not altoget her the
country ii is represented to be. Only in the
north is the climate severe.
southern Siberia is one of the most
fertile and prosperous regions in existence
1t is to this part of the world that most
political prisoners are eXiled. The govern
ment gives each of them fixed number of
acres of land, house, cattle, horses, and
farming implements. The only restriction
placed upon them is that they shall not &c
outside given circle and there is q suf-
ficient force to see that they obey this be
hest. The vast majority of them settle
down to quiet, peaceful, and prosperous
life, and never want to come back again
even after their terms of exile are fin
ished. There are many enormously rich
people in this portion of Siberia. The
merchants make vast fortunes, financial
easiness Is prevalent, and there is just as
much luxury in that country as there is in
any other part of the world. 1t is to north
ern Siberia, where the copper mines are
situated, that the worst criminals such al
murderers and thieves of the vilest degree
are sent To condemn man to work il
the copper mines is as good as reading his
death sentence, for he seldom survives
year of labor there
THE COsSACK AN INDEPENDENT SOLDIER
what" / asked, ais the difference be
tween your Cossack and the ordinar.
soldier in your army"
1.-THE Cossack, ;" responded Col de Gessler
"is an independent soldier. can only likeI
him to the militia in your country, ant
even there find points of marked dissim
ilarity. He owns his horse, his uniform
his small arms, and all his other accoutre
ments excepting his rifle. That alone be
long to the government. When he begin
in the service of the car he must remain
in that service whenever it is demande,
of him to the end of his life. His only ad
vantage is that in time of peace he i
to carry on any pursuit which he ma
care to embark. The Cossack country
always thriving and pleasant. The Cos
sacks, indeed, regard themselves as tn
original Russians, tracing their ancestr
back to little Russia, and they speak G
all the other inhabitants of the grea
country as being with them, but not c
Them 1t is difficult to tell what will b
the future of Russia. There is grea
change working in the country, and Their
seems no way out of the nations finances
difficulties. 1t looks indeed, as thong
absolute bankruptcy were impending
Some of Col. de Gessler's anecdotes {
life in the latter campaigns of his caree
were interesting. He told, for instano,
how, at The fall of Plevna, Osman Pash
sent his sword to Skobeleff and that upo